Despite the long and painful recovery facing Brad Dean, his mother said he is simply thankful he is alive to spend Christmas with his family.

The 29-year-old Birmingham firefighter, severely burned in a Nov. 18 blaze at a vacant house, is also grateful for the support of fellow firefighters and the community that has poured in since he was hurt, his mother, Marty Dean, said.

"He says he's just thankful to be alive and able to heal. He's having to teach mama that. It's just too much for me," she said.

Because the Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service is still investigating the circumstances of the fire that injured him and two other firefighters, Brad Dean declined to comment.

However, his mother said the fire left him with burns that extended from his fingertips to his shoulders, some that burned him down to the bone.

The first news reports about the fire said only two firefighters suffered minor injuries. Birmingham fire officials said those reports were due to a miscommunication between department officials the day of the fire.

The gear her son wore told a different story, Marty Dean said.

Seams were burned away from protective gear designed to withstand 800-degree heat and holes were left in his helmet, she said.

"We don't have many catastrophic injuries like these. He was extremely lucky given the situation," said Don Baker, president of the Birmingham firefighters union. "He came as close to dying in a fire as I've seen in my 23 years" as a firefighter, he added.

'One big family'

In addition to being thankful to still be alive, Marty Dean said her son is grateful Baker and other union members have arranged a benefit scheduled for Sunday to help him, his wife Sabrina and their daughters -- Makayla, 4, and Maleah, 2.

"It's overwhelming," she said. "Firefighters are just one big family."

That extended family -- other Birmingham firefighters and the International Association of Firefighters union -- reached out to Bleve Entertainment Group, an entertainment group that helps injured firefighters and police officers facing financial difficulties.

The money will be needed as Dean continues to recover from the skin grafts he received on both arms during his 10-day stay in UAB Hospital's burn unit. Skin was taken from his left leg, from the knee to the hip, to cover the five third-degree burns he suffered.

It could be up to a year before Brad Dean can return to light duty if he doesn't have to go on disability, his mother said. The injuries also sidelined him from a second part-time job, she said.

"That's what pays for the diapers and daycare," she said of the second job.

"We're trying to keep him afloat. We want to make sure his family is taken care of," Baker said. "All firefighters work part-time jobs. We tell young guys they can't depend on that, but with the economy being what it is, a lot of them do."

Benefit concert

To help the family, Bleve and Entertainment One Music are bringing former "American Idol" contestant Bucky Covington to perform Sunday from 1 p.m. until 4 p.m. at Trussville's Lightning Strikes Bowling Center to raise money for the Dean family.

Tickets are $25 to bowl and listen to Covington perform or $10 just for the performance. Children under the age of 10 can get in free.

Those financial hardships seem small in comparison to what Dean has faced since the Nov. 18 fire in the 700 block of 47th Street North. The fire was extensive. Firefighters pulled back once they judged the structural integrity of the house was questionable, but not before Dean was engulfed in flames.

Two other firefighters escaped with minor injuries, but Dean was trapped inside and believed he was about to die, his mother said.

"The air was twinkling with fire. He said he took a knee and kept seeing his girls' faces and asked God to get him out," she said.

Through the darkness, Dean saw a window and "decided it had to be better than where he was," his mother said.

He leapt through the window, still on fire, and landed eight feet below on his back on top of his oxygen tank, she recalled.

The day after his first graft surgery, Dean turned 29, Marty Dean said.

"This next year is going to be hard," said Marty Dean, whose husband, Ronnie Dean, is a retired Birmingham firefighter. "But the response so far has been overwhelming."